


Because You Matter to Me

by onihunter305



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Malec, Post-Episode S2E8, Sibling Bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 11:37:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9894902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onihunter305/pseuds/onihunter305
Summary: Alec and Max have an important talk about his relationship with Magnus and Max’s behavior at his party.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Well, this is my first story on this site (I used to post to fanfiction.net) and it is also my first Shadowhunter story. Hope everyone enjoys!!

Alec closed the door of his parent’s bedroom and sighed deeply. He wasn’t sure how to handle the news his mother had just dropped on him and Jace. His father was cheating on her. He was tearing their family apart. The man that they all idolized, the one who was level-headed, clearly had lost his mind. He was the one who was understanding when it came to having a daughter who danced with downworlders, a son with demon blood, and another one who was gay. How could that man, the one they all thought they knew, cheat on his mother.

After telling them she was understandably visibly shaken. It had taken all of Alec’s willpower to stay in the hallway, holding his mother as she sobbed out her disappointment and pain, instead of rushing to Idris to confront his father for his actions. It had only been his mother’s strong grip on his body that had kept him there, that and Jace’s comforting hand on his back that let him know he wasn’t going to have to handle this alone. 

Eventually the both of them got her into bed and they waited until she fell asleep, no words shared between them. After she was sleeping soundly they left the room, both stopping outside the closed door and slumping against the wall.

“What are we going to do,” Jace asked, the first one to break the silence. 

“Right now, nothing. Mother has to return to Idris under orders of the Clave, Max is to stay here with us. It’ll be good for him to be away from all the fighting and to spend more time with us,” Alec said, compartmentalizing everything as well as he could, he needed to keep a clear head to handle everything that was being thrown at him. 

“Couldn’t agree more with that, he’s…almost unrecognizable at times. Tonight, the way he spoke to Magnus, and me…I fear he’s spent too much time with those close-minded bigots in Idris,” Jace said, his eyes meeting Alec’s, showing the frustration and sadness he felt. Alec’s heart clenched painfully, remembering how dismissive and disgusted Max had acted towards his warlock boyfriend. He silently hoped that the damage inflected on his character wasn’t too deep and that it could be fixed.

“I am going to check on Max, make sure he is doing alright after receiving his first rune. And I guess I’ll let him know of the plan moving forward,” Alec said, slightly resigned. He had a feeling Max would have mixed feelings about staying at the Institute with them, especially after his little spectacle at the party. 

“Good luck,” Jace said, “I’m going to go…check on Clary.”

Alec shared a small smile with his brother, his parabatai. Both knew they weren’t in the best of places, but they also knew that they could and would help each other through what they were going through. 

Jace walked down the hall and Alec turned towards the opposite direction, only having to pass a few doors before he ended up at the one that contained his youngest brother. He took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts. He wasn’t sure how to approach Max about how he treated Magnus at the party. On one hand, he was extremely disappointed in Max’s close-minded opinions of the downworlders at the party and how outwardly he displayed his disgust. On the other hand, Alec was personally upset at how Max had treated Magnus, knowing he was Alec’s boyfriend. It put Alec in a difficult position. He didn’t want his brother to be uncomfortable with who he was with, but he also would not allow Max to treat Magnus the way he did at the party ever again. And with Max staying at the institute under his sibling’s watch, it was likely he would have many interactions with Magnus during his time there. 

Feeling like activating his fearless rune, Alec sighed and raised his hand to knock on his little brother’s door. He waited a moment for Max’s call for him to enter the room and soundlessly opened the door and entered.

It was a fairly basic room, mostly used by visiting shadowhunters. Max had never had his own room at the New York Institute as he had been schooled elsewhere for most of his life but this room had been chosen for him during his stay due to its close proximity to Maryse and Alec’s rooms. 

Alec scanned the room and found his bother sitting, with his legs crossed, on his bed. In his lap was the box that Magnus had given Max in honor of his rune ceremony, the lid had been removed but the contents had yet to be taken out. He was staring at it with a complex look on his face, one Alec couldn’t read.

Alec stayed silent as he approached the bed, eventually taking a seat next to Max at the end, close enough to nudge him slightly with his shoulder to get him to turn and look at him. Alec found himself at a loss for words, something that never happened between himself and his siblings. He had always found words in which to communicate with them, feeling tongue-tied was a different sensation as he fought to figure out how to bring everything up with his youngest brother.

“How are you feeling?” Alec started, not wanting to get into everything right away.

“Alright, tired I guess,” Max replied, his eyes still not leaving the gift inclosed in the simple white box, his hand reached out to carefully run his fingers over the gift, as if he was afraid to actually touch it.

“It was a long day, I will give you that,” Alec replied, wanting Max to meet his eyes more than anything. 

“Are you here to yell at me?” Max asked softly, finally looking at Alec. 

Alec paused, looking at his brother’s expression. It wasn’t one of fear or anger, but more of sadness and embarrassment. All the scorn and anger he had seen from Max earlier at the party had been erased and in its place was regret. Seeing his brother look so defeated, especially on a day that was supposed to be solely for celebration, broke Alec’s heart. 

“No, I’m not one for yelling really,” Alec finally responded. “And I’m sure you’ve had enough yelling for a while.”

“Yeah…” Max trailed off, his eyes falling back on the gift in his lap.

“I’m not going to yell, but I would like to talk to you about somethings that occurred at the party at Magnus’ loft,” Alec said, carefully choosing his words. He didn’t want this to be a fight, but he needed Max to understand what was going to be acceptable and what wasn’t.

“I’m sorry Alec,” Max said, his voice not quite echoing the sadness that had shown on his face moments before. It was as if he knew he was supposed to apologize, but didn’t quite feel the need to. Alec was familiar with this tone as it was one he had used many times before when speaking with his parents. 

“Why did you act like that Max, you have never had any prejudice against downworlders before. In fact, I remember you complementing one of the Seelie’s markings the last time you were here,” Alec said, trying to understand without getting angry. It was clear that there were other things going on with his brother but treating others as though they were less than him was not an acceptable way to deal with it. There was a long pause before Max spoke again.

“Because it’s all his fault that mom and dad are fighting all the time, if he wasn’t your boyfriend then they would be happy!” Max finally said, pushing the box off his lap towards Alec, allowing the older male to finally see the contents inside the box. The hilt of an seraph blade was beyond ornate, nicer than one Alec had seen in a long time. That alone would be a clear sign that it came from Magnus, no Shadowhunter would have given such a decorative weapon, knowing it was just going to be covered in demon ichor. What was even more special about this particular weapon was the protection spells that Alec could feel woven into its very being. Alec could almost feel the familiar warmth coming from the weapon, letting him know that it was Magnus who had poured his magic into the angelic blade to strengthen it and protect Max. 

The gift’s reveal stunned Alec silent. He hadn’t known what Magnus planned to give his brother for his rune ceremony, but never in his wildest imagination would he have thought that Magnus would have woven protection spells and enchantments through his brother’s first seraph blade. Alec bit his lip to keep his emotions in, because although his gift had been for Max, the intention behind it was to give Alec peace of mind knowing that his brother had additional protection as he continued his journey to become a Shadowhunter. 

“Alec?” Max said tentatively, snapping Alec out of his quiet study of the weapon in the box. Max had been watching his brother’s emotions dance across his face and it made him nervous, he had never seen Alec so open with his emotions. 

“There is a lot wrong with what you just said Max and I want to take some time to explain things so you understand. First of all, I want to make something perfectly clear to you, no one is ever going to take me away from you or any other member of our family. Just as Jace’s girlfriends or Izzy’s boyfriends never took them away from us, Magnus has no intention of taking me away from you. I will still always be here when you need me, no matter what just with some extra help from time to time. He threw a party for you because I asked him to, so we could all be together. He wanted to celebrate your special day and he wouldn’t have been allowed in the institute to do so,” Alec said, trying to will his brother to understand and accept.

“Additionally, it’s not his fault mom and dad are fighting, the reason is much deeper than my relationship. Mom may not care for Magnus, or like that he and I are dating, but she also has a lot of other responsibilities that are causing stress between her and dad. This whole mess with Valentine is causing a lot of trouble for a lot of people. Yes, my actions at my wedding did not help the situation, but Magnus is not at fault for any of that. If you want to blame someone, blame me,” Alec said calmly. 

Max looked up at him and at that moment, Alec could see the bags under his eyes and how tired he looked, too tired for a boy his age. 

“Why? Why him?” Max asked, a loaded question in itself that made Alec take a deep breath before even considering answering.

“He makes me happy Max. And I’m sorry if my having a boyfriend is strange or weird for you, but that is just who I am,” Alec said, his voice soft as his cheeks warmed up at the topic of conversation.

“I don’t care that you have a boyfriend, not really,” Max said, seeing how sad his bother looked as he tried to explain his sexuality to him. 

“Thank you Max, I know this is something different, something you didn’t expect but it is part of me. And as for dating Magnus, well, it wasn’t exactly planned for everything to go this way but he… he makes me happy,” Alec said, keeping it simple.

“I know…I can tell,” Max finally said, releasing a deep breath. “I could even tell through the fire messages you send me. You’ve been happier since you called off your wedding and decided to be with him instead. And I want you happy Alec, you should be happy. But…he’s a warlock…”

“He is, the High Warlock of Brooklyn as a matter of fact. But that doesn’t change the fact that he is a person, a person who I care about,” Alec said, feeling his stomach roll uncomfortably at the turn this conversation had taken. As much as he loved his brother, this wasn’t a conversation he was comfortable having with him, it was barely a conversation he was comfortable having with anyone. 

“I guess he’s not that bad, and his warlock mark was pretty cool,” Max admitted, thinking back to the glowing yellow cat eyes that Magnus had revealed to him upon his request.

“Thanks I guess,” Alec chuckled. “And for the record, I like his warlock mark too,” he added, smiling as he thought back to a few nights before when Magnus had revealed his warlock mark to him in private. 

“Do you love him?” Max asked suddenly, causing the heat to rise up Alec’s neck and his face to burn.

“I care for him, and he cares for me. That is all you need to know about that,” Alec laughed nervously, ruffling Max’s hair and tickling his sides to distract him from continuing their conversation. It worked as both brothers laughed and fell back against the bed. They laid there silently for a moment before Max opened his mouth to continue their conversation, or so Alec thought. 

“They fight all the time, so much screaming,” He said sadly, referring back to their parents. Alec’s smile left his face as he sat up, helping Max do the same.

“I know buddy, so that is one of the reasons you are going to stay here with us when mom goes back to Idris to continue working for the Clave. You can start your training here with me and Izzy and Jace,” Alec said, watching carefully for Max’s reaction to the news. 

“Seriously? I’m staying here?” He asked, hope breaking through his voice.

“Yeah, you are. But that also means that you will be seeing more of Magnus and I together, which I hope won’t be a problem,” Alec said, swinging the conversation back to where it was moments before, needing to know it was going to be okay.

“He’s not that bad. He threw a really nice party for me. And he got me this nice seraph blade,” Max said, looking back at the gift in the box.

“He did more than just that,” Alec began to explain, “this particular blade has been enchanted with protection spells to help keep you safe in your future battles.”

“Wow,” Max said, taking the hilt out of the box and holding it reverently. “That is so cool!”

“Yeah, it is,” Alec said, laughing at his brother’s excitement. “I bet no one else has an angelic blade with protection spells from the High Warlock of Brooklyn,” he added.

“Not even you?” Max asked, his eyes widened. 

“Nope, not even me,” Alec said, not adding that Magnus had added some protection spells on his bow when he thought he wasn’t looking. 

“And I was rude to him,” Max said, his mood deflating again. Alec couldn’t help but smile, despite the seriousness of the topic of conversation. He could see the fragments of his brother, the one who was fascinated by the downworlders and held no ill feelings towards them, peaking through. “He probably hates me. I even scoffed at his warlock mark even though I thought it was cool, I just didn’t want mom to be mad at me for liking your boyfriend when she didn’t,” Max said, sounding resigned. 

Alec’s heart broke for Max in that moment. He knew, better than most of his siblings, the enormous weight one carried when they were trying to live to please their parents. He almost went so far as to marry someone he would never have been truly fulfilled with to try and garner their approval. He understood why Max did what he did, even if he didn’t approve of who he did it to.

“Yes, you were rude to him Max, and seeing you treat him like that not only hurt him but hurt me too. You are a very important part of my life, but so is he. However, I know what it’s like to feel like you have to please Mom, and I also know what it’s like to try and make her happy.”

“Do you think he will forgive me?” Max asked. “If I apologized in my thank you fire message to him?” 

“I’m sure he will,” Alec said, smiling genuinely at his baby brother. 

“Thanks Alec,” Max said, reaching over and hugging his brother’s midsection. “And just for the record, I thought your boyfriend was really nice, and he throws great parties, and gives great gifts,” he rambled off.

“Glad you approve, Magnus will be particularly excited to know that you think he throws great parties,” Alec laughed. “Now it is getting late, and shadowhunter training starts early so you better get some sleep,” Alec instructed, taking the gift and the box off of Max’s bed and putting it on the dresser. By the time he turned back Max had climbed under the sheets and was settling into the pillows. “Goodnight Max,” Alec said, leaning down and kissing his brother’s forehead. 

“Goodnight Alec, and thanks, for everything,” Max replied, closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep. 

Alec closed the door behind him as he exited the room, he was feeling overwhelmed with emotion. Max approved of him and Magnus, and even his mother had begun to approve. And his boyfriend had given his brother a gift that would help give Alec peace of mind when he finally went out into battle. 

Feeling a sense of calmness he hadn’t felt in a while, he pulled his phone out of his back pocket and dialed the familiar number of the only person he was interested in seeing at this point.

“Hey Magnus.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope everyone enjoyed reading. I felt as if Max and Alec needed that scene to get everything out in the open after how he acted towards Magnus at the party. I also wanted to know what Magnus gave Max at the party. I feel like this gift was appropriate as he did something similar in the Bane Chronicles for Izzy’s whip.


End file.
